Racket for tennis or the like.



A. A. TUNMER.

RAGKET FOR TENNIS OR THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 6,1911.

Patented Feb. 25, 1918.

t rus-l STATES rescuer use rumus os use emu] Application filed November Specification 01 Letters Yet-est. V

Patented Feb. 5%

6, will. fleets! filo. (558,86L5.

To all wizom may concern;

Be it lrnown that l, ALFRED Ammo: TUN- MER, a subject of the King of Great Britsin, residing st 45 and 4? Rue Vsllicr, Levcllois- Ferret, Department of Seine, France, he'i c. invented certain new and useful Improv sments in Rackets for Tennis or the Like, of which the following is a specificstiou.

The manufacture of tennis rackets re quires for theconstruction of the frame .a wood of a special quality and in o. p'rede-I terminetl condition of dryness. Neverthe-' less in spite of the careful observation of these conditions it has not been possible; hitherto "to give tennis rackets the quulitie 5 oi rigidity" and of resistance to warping which ere necessary for them. In principle the new method oi menu: 'facture which forms the object of the pres' out invention consists essentially in form-L ing the frame of the rocket in two psrts-- an external port formed of a'single piece together with the-connections to the handle,

and an internulpert formed of swoodeu lath of suitable length and width coiled; upon itself a certain number of times so as to have s predetermined thickness, this internal frame, of which the coils are united by glue, being itself fixed to the external frame also by gluing. This new method oi menuiecture presents the following vent-ages. l. The frame of the rocket can be constructed with wood of any qualit. 2. The rigidity of the frame is considersh. I increased, which makes possible a much stronger end more durable tension of the cords than in rockets of present construction. 3.. The prevention of warping, the frame being homogeneous throughout all its length so that the strains are equally distributeci. Greet facility in mounting the wedge piece, the tendency of which to escape from its place in a drawback in the ordinary construction, Whereas in thonew method of construction this tendency is favorable inasmuch as the wedge acting in the manner of a buttress increases the adherence between the outer frame of the coils of the curved lath. 5. A gre eter resistance at the shoulders which are the weal: points in the rockets of usual construction.

A construction of the invention is illustreted by way of example in the accompanying drawing.

Figure 1 shows in front elevation of e lath of suitable-length so as to gooseess the ends .3 uncle which vform in cutes etion with e piece of wood inserted. het'weenthem the handle 5, es in the usualv construe- 'ticn. Fig. 1 show that the external frsrce fl is out out to have an increasing thickness, and so that the narrowest pert forms the upper half of the circle of the frame, whilet-he wider erts 6 and 7 form the shoulders of the .rscrcet and thus import to it e strength. Trunsversely the frame 1 may be of uniform width over all its length, or it may be of a width slightly increasing from the top to Fig. 2.

The internal frame .2 which fofcriis the characteristic portion of the new construo' tion, consists of a wooden lath of any soil;- shle lzincl, cut to at predetermined length sdmitting'of it being coiled upon itself a given number of times so he to possess the thickness requisite to formin combination with the frame 1 a frame of dimensions corresponding to those of the frame of the rockets now used. In Fig. 3 which shows in detail this internal frame, it may he seen that the lath is long enough to edi'cit of having four turns or thicknesses 2*, 2 2, 2*. Nevertheless it is obvious this number has nothing fired it ceu be made more or less according to the length of the lath The ends .8 and 9 (Fig. 3) the lath ere'trinnned oil so as to present no projection when the frame is put together. The racket moreover includes wedge piece 10 fixed in the usual menner between the handle pieces 3 end 4, wide upper part of said block pressing against the internal frame 2. Finally each of the parts forming the frame as well as the block ere per-forested with holes for the passage and the securing of the cords or gut in the usual manner. H It will be obvious that any suiteble the bottom as sliown'in n so internal 2. The external ironie- *lconsists es usuel the m 1 roan-nae method of manufacture may be employed for effecting the assemblage of the constituent parts of the racket constructed as hereinbefore described. Nevertheless by way of example it may be pointed out that the lath forming the interior frame :2 is coiled on. itself around a block and that simultaneously the coils will be glued on to the other so that when the coiling is finished the lath forms a rigid whole as shown in Fig. 3, which shows that the enrollment is effected in such a manner that the ends (3 and 9 are situated in the smaller aXis of the oval. Moreover the interior frame thus construct ed is combined with the external frame 1 to which it is glued and the wedge piece 10 is intersecured i the space left for it and fixed there by means of screws or otherwise. The racket then undergoes allthe operations of finishing usually employed.

As Will be seen, the novel method of construction of the racket frame which has been above described is particularly remarkabl for giving to the said frame the qualities of resistance and homogeneity which are Wanting in the ordinary construction.

It will be obvious that from the esthetic point of View the shoulders of the rackets thus constructed may be provided with bindings w in the manner already in use. Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is:'

1. A racket having a frame comprising a shaped frame portion consisting of convolutions of a lath, an outer frame portion in closing said first frame portion, and means to secure said portions together. A

2. A. racket having a frame comprising a shaped frame port-ion consisting of con- VOiUl'lOllS of a lat-h, an outer frame portion im'losing said first frame port-ion and provided with thickened parts to provide reinforced shoulders for the racket, means to secure said portions together.

3. Jr racket having a frame comprising a shaped fraine portion consisting of convolutions of a lath, an outer frame portion inclosing said first frame portion and proriding handle pieces, means to secursaid two frame portions together, and a wedge member arranged between said first frame portion and the handle pieces of the other frame. member.

i. A racket having a head including strengthening means for said head comprising a single strip of material wrapped a plurality of times in the form of said head andpositioned in said head.

5. Means for strengthening the heads of rackets comprising a strip of material hav' ing a plurality of turns in the form of said racket and adapted to be secured inside the head of a racket, the ends of said strip of material being correspondingly tapered and c-p 'iositely disposed.

In testimony whereof I have a'ilixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ALFRED ADRIEN TUNMER.

iiitnesscs H. C. Coxn, Guonoss LAUREND. 

